VOLUNTEERS are needed to help renovate Blackburn Foodbank’s new home.

Bosses at the charity, which helps people who are in crisis, said they planned to move into the 4,000 sq ft building in Oakenhurst Road, within the next month.

Ros Duerden, who founded and manages the food bank, said the new facilities in the former Carers’ Service building, which still needs some work, would allow the organisation to provide food and support to the thousands of people who reach out for help each year.

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During December, Blackburn Foodbank gave essential supplies to 1,215 people – a figure almost twice as high as the year before.

Ros said: “Our current building is about a quarter of the size of our new building.

“One of the motivations for the move was to bring the centre where we meet with the public and the warehouse together.

“But we will also be developing a whole raft of follow up services, meaning we are moving from just being a safety net to enabling people to build sustainability in their lives.

“So if there is anybody out there, like a plumber or decorator with some spare time, we need their help to renovate, regenerate and redecorate the building.”

Ros said that as well as giving out food to those who had been referred, the new facilities would allow the centre to open a community kitchen, to teach people how to cook low-cost, healthy meals, as well as an internet suite, instructing visitors how to use computers to looks for jobs and find out information on government websites.

A debt service will also be offered from the centre aimed at helping people get to grips with their money issues.

The food bank manager said the demand for the services had been a lot more than expected when it was set up in November 2012.

Ros said: “We were initially advised we might see about 4,000 people a year, but to date, we are seeing about 7,500 a year, which is much more than we thought.

“I think this is because of a combination of things.

“The issues were always there, but they were hidden.

“Now, because we are starting to meet people’s needs, those people are coming to the surface. However, I think there is still a large number of people in need of our services.

“The people who visit us just need a bit of support and encouragement to believe they can do it and to believe life will not always be the same.

“We are not criticising anybody for their situation there is a lot of help out there, but people just need to believe in themselves.”

To offer your skills and time to the foodbank, call 01254 672756.